Who Am I?

I served in the US Navy from 2002-08; four of those years were as a Nuclear Propulsion Operator aboard an aircraft carrier. I engage in political activism in various Democratic circles when I am able to. I have a cat, and I am an uncle.

All opinions that I express are my own and do not reflect the views of any organization that I represent.

Thursday, December 4, 2014

2014 NFL SEASON WEEK 14

MUST WATCH GAMES

Cowboys at Bears/Seahawks at Eagles

All
of these teams played last week on Thanksgiving Day.

To
be honest I did not watch much of the Eagles decimating the Cowboys. I was busy
visiting with family members as we gathered over at my aunt's and her wife's
house. It was nice of my aunt's spouse to put on the game for me. She is a nice
lady.

Nicer
than the Eagles were to Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day.

I
think the Cowboys were still feeling the after effects of having to play a
Sunday Night road game and then a Thanksgiving home game. Also even though the
defense has stayed under the radar for most of the season, it was highly
suspect coming into this season.

As
Star-Telegram's Randy Galloway said in his column analyzing the
Cowboys loss and their prospects of breaking their 8-8 streak, he
said the Cowboys defense"was an
iffy group of NFL boat people and minimum-wage types who had performed far
above football pedigree."

The
other team that made me and other people wretch their Thanksgiving meal was the
Chicago Bears. 5-7 with their final games against two 5-7 teams who are
somewhat decent (Saints and Vikings) and hosting the Lions in Week 16. The
Bears had a 14-3 lead on the Lions before the Lions realized that they were
playing the Bears.

Meanwhile
the two teams that did well on Thanksgiving, the Eagles and Seahawks, meet in
Philadelphia that could determine playoff seeding. At 3-3 it was looking like
the Seahawks would not have a chance to defend their title in the playoffs.
Since then, Seattle has reeled off 5 wins in their last 6 games. For the
Seahawks, their final three games are against divisional foes while the Eagles
also play the NFC East in their final three games.

Colts at Browns/Ravens at
Dolphins/Steelers at Bengals

The
Colts currently lead their division with an 8-4 and could be the
first team
to clinch a playoff spot with a win over the Browns and the unlikely scenario
of the Texans losing to the Jaguars.

The
Browns, Ravens, and Steelers are all tied for second place (or last place
depending on your perspective) in the AFC North. That division could end up
with every team
finishing
with 10 wins and only one (the division champion) makes the playoffs.

On
Monday Night Football in Week 12, Ravens running back Justin Forsett had his coming out party by rushing for 182
yards and two touchdowns in their 34-27 win at New
Orleans.
The Ravens lost to the Chargers on Sunday and are facing a Dolphins team that
are eying a run at the playoffs. Like the Ravens, Browns, and Steelers, the
Dolphins are also part of the 7-5 AFC logjam.

Don't
underestimate the Dolphins. Miami's defense is ranked 6th in points against and
6th in yards against.

The
Steelers are continuing their bad habit of playing down to their competition.
They have had wins over Cleveland, Houston, Indianapolis, and Baltimore, all teams
currently .500 or better.

But
their losses… The Buccaneers currently 2-10. The freakin' JETS?! The Saints
last Sunday who are 5-7, but they are in the thick of the NFC South race.

The
Bengals are at an advantage given their tie. A tie counts as half a win and
half a loss in the standings. Right now the Bengals hold the 3 seed and have as
many wins as the Colts. Though the Colts beat the Bengals, that tie gives them
an advantage because Cincinnati has 8.5 wins vs. the Colts 8 wins. And that is
why the race for homefield in the AFC might come down to the final few games
remaining. The Patriots and Broncos have the bye week right now, but only lead
the Bengals by half a game. Doesn't matter that the Patriots beat the Bengals.
The Bengals could leap frog over the Patriots for homefield in the AFC. Same
thing could happen if the Bengals beat the Broncos on Monday Night in Week 16.

The
tie is also helping them right now leading the AFC North 7-5 pile. A win over
the Steelers would widen their lead. These two teams will meet again in Week 17
in Pittsburgh.

Rams at Washington

In
2012 Robert Griffin III was selected second overall by the St. Louis Rams. The
Rams were not the holders of that pick. Originally it was Washington that held
the second overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. The Washington team gave up
their 2012, 2013, and 2014 first round picks and their 2012 second round pick.
The Rams gave up their second overall pick in 2012 because they felt that they
had a quarterback in Sam Bradford. Bradford has been oft injured and could be
looking for another team after this season.

Griffin
too has suffered the injury bug which is why he was benched leading up to
Washington's 49-27 loss at Indianapolis. I think it because Washington is
undergoing talent evaluation for what they have on the team long term. Already
there is speculation
that the Griffin era in Washington is over and that the team is either looking
to trade him or release
him via free agency where he can sign with any team provided they have the
cap space.

As
for the Rams, they used the
draft picks they got to turn their team into a perennial championship team
and they are in the middle of the hunt for homefield throughout the NFC
playoffs.

Ha!
Just kidding. The Rams have been flirting with mediocrity for the last few
seasons, but they aren't exactly a bad team.

It
is likely that they might be on the market for a quarterback this coming
offseason. One could be available.

Patriots at Chargers

Last
week the Patriots 7 game winning streak was broken in their 26-21 loss at Green
Bay. The game in Wisconsin lived up to the hype and I and many other football
watchers would not be surprised if the Packers and Patriots meet again in Super
Bowl XLIX.

San
Diego is 8-4, are currently the 5-seed in the AFC playoffs, and are one game
behind Denver for the AFC West lead. Since their bye week San Diego has gone
into playoff mode and won three straight. Their last loss was part of a three
game losing streak and was a 37-0 loss at Miami.

The
Chargers better beware. The Patriots are PISSED they lost.

And
now the picks.

Kickoff
times are mountain time, games airing in Denver are noted by (DEN), and picks
are in BOLD.